What is I-O?

Industrial-organizational (I-O) psychology is the scientific study of working and the application of that science to workplace issues facing individuals, teams, and organizations.
The scientific method is applied to investigate issues of critical relevance to individuals, businesses, and society.

In September of 1995, the Scientific Affairs Committee of the Society
for Industrial and Organizational Psychology created a subcommittee to review
psychological and behavioral research on affirmative action. That review follows, and the
nine members of the subcommittee are the authors of this report.

To provide some context, we begin with a brief review of important
legislation and case law, and distinguish affirmative action from related concepts. A more
detailed review of these matters will be provided by a second subcommittee. We then turn
to the heart of the review -- research on evaluations of affirmative action and
affirmative action plans (AAPs). After that, we review research on how the presence of an
AAP affects non-target group members' perceptions of target group members, and the
relations between target group members and non-target group members. We then review
corresponding research on the psychological and behavioral effects of affirmative action
on target group members themselves. To provide additional context, we briefly discuss the
economic effects of affirmative action on target groups and on organizations. We close by
drawing some general conclusions, by discussing the limitations of current knowledge, and
by outlining some needed research.